Gathering Storm (The Salvation of Tempestria Book 2) - Gary Stringer (read e book TXT) 📗

could see the tears of laughter forming in the corners of her eyes.

“So, why, erm,” she began, faltering and then trying again. “Why bring this up now?”

“Because when Daelen described you in that particular way, it felt…” the druidess blushed again “…well, it felt pretty good, actually, and I don’t think it was just the sound of your sexy voice, Daelen. It’s telling me to find a reference to that phrase. That’s why I brought everyone in here.

“I’ve searched through everything I’ve already got, and so far, nothing. There’s something here in this library, I’m sure of it, but somehow it’s eluding my usual locator magic.”

“Why would it do that?” Daelen wondered, scowling at the two Chetsuans. They were trying hard to calm down, but just as one settled, a giggle would escape the other’s mouth and set her sister off again. “If this ‘assassin peacemaker’ reference is significant, why would it obstruct your ability to find it?”

“My guess is that sometimes it’s not just about finding the information,” she seemed to wince, slightly, “but how I find it.”

This prompted Sara and Jessica to sing a chorus of a song called ‘It Ain’t What You Do, It’s the Way That You Do It’ followed by an equivalent of a high five with their tails.

“Before we turn your entire library upside down, Daelen, can you think of anything?”

“Seems reasonable,” Mandalee told Daelen. “I mean, it was you who said, ‘assassin peacemaker,’ so maybe it’s a reference to something you’ve seen before.”

“Hey guys,” Cat called out, looking distinctly uncomfortable. Everyone turned to look at the druidess, her eyes slightly glazed. “Could we avoid saying the actual phrase from now on, please?”

Mandalee suddenly realised that the reason her friend was so flushed wasn’t just from embarrassment but from the repeated…stimulus.

“You mean, every time one of us says it…”

Cat nodded.

Mandalee and Daelen apologised, while the Chetsuans went with, “Blimey!”

Daelen had a thought, just then. He couldn’t quite isolate it; it was just a vague impression that they were looking in the wrong place.

“Have you tried fiction?”

Cat frowned. “No, why would I?”

“Just an idea,” he replied with a shrug. “It feels right. As if it’s something I read once, long ago.”

“Any chance of narrowing it down?” Mandalee prompted.

“Actually, we can probably narrow it down with some common sense,” Sara suggested. “Daelen said assa—” she caught herself, “—I mean, he used that phrase with reference to you, Mandalee, so I would guess that the kind of character we’re looking for is a bit like you.”

Jessica took up the thread.

“Good thinking, sis. So, the question is, what category would this world put your story in?”

“Fantasy? Sci-Fi?” Sara suggested.

“Action adventure,” Daelen insisted. “I’m sure of it. That’s where we need to look.”

“Well done guys,” Cat commended them. “I knew we’d get there if we worked together.”

The two Chetsuans, knowing the library better than anyone, even Daelen himself, ran over to the relevant section of shelves and began searching through the titles, starting at each end and working their way through so they’d meet in the middle.

A few moments later, Sara called out, “Found it!”

Working backwards from Z, what she had found was the end of a series of books, under the umbrella title:

‘Melanda: Assassin’ written by ‘Rose Storm.’

Despite their age, they were perfectly preserved, as if untouched by the passage of time.

This final instalment was entitled: The Assassin Peacemaker and according to the back cover:

Tired of the infighting, the Assassin has turned Peacemaker. Recent events forced the two gangs to work together, but now that threat has ended, they look set to return to their old ways. Elisabeth Melanda is determined that will not happen. The Red Cats and the Twin Tigers must fully unite before everything is lost. To do that, the Assassin Peacemaker finds she must go back to the beginning, to where this all started, in Training School.

“Training School,” Jessica echoed. “That’s the title of the first novel in the series.”

So saying, she pulled it off the shelf. She also pointed out to her sister that she’d just used the forbidden phrase twice.

Realising she was right, Sara gasped an apology to Cat.

“It’s OK,” she replied. “Nothing happened, which means you’ve found it.”

The Chetsuans brought the two novels over to where the druidess was sitting.

“Rose Storm,” Daelen remarked with misty eyes. “That was the name she used. I should have remembered.”

He reminded Catriona that he’d once had a mortal lover from Tempestria, named Rose. They lived there in his house on Earth for a time, and one of the things she liked to do was write fiction. She enjoyed the creative process of putting words in ink onto paper. She wrote a lot, and it had been so long ago that he couldn’t remember all the titles.

Mandalee told Daelen she recognised the surname ‘Storm’ from his credit card – she’d seen it often enough while she was shopping. Come to think of it, she hadn’t worn half her new stuff, but they were going to be here for more than two weeks, yet, so she guessed she’d have time.

“And then she used the other half for the name of one of these gangs in her story,” Cat realised. “The Twin Tigers.”

“The names of her main character and the other gang ain’t exactly subtle, either, are they, love?” Jessica put in. “E. Melanda: Mandalee, Red: Redfletching, Cats: Catriona.” Then she paused, stunned as the implications hit her. “Hang on – these books were written long before any of us were even born, Daelen excepted. How could she have known your names?”

“Wait,” Sara put in, “you mentioned something about Time magic. Is that what this is?”

“Must be,” Cat replied, nodding absently while flicking through the pages of The Assassin Peacemaker. Nothing leapt out, so she decided the most sensible plan was to do what the back cover said: go back to the beginning, to Training School. Opening that first book, then, she read the dedication inside:

To Cat,

Dig deep in your training, and you will find